Water-alarm



(No Model.)

F. J. BORT.

' WATER ALARM.

Patented Apr. 6, 1886.

WITNESSES N PETERS. Plmn-Uthcgnphan Wuhingtoo. m;

rrn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK J. BORT, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

WATER-ALARM.

EPEQEFEGATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 339,260, dated April 6, 1886.

Application filed September 15, 1885. ,Serial No. 177,154. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK J Born, of Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in lVatenAlarms; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact rflescription of the invention, such as will. enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to an improved apparatus for a high and low water alarm for steam boilers,in which two floats are employed, with a combination of lever attachments for operating the whistle-valve, to the end that high or low water will operate the one or the other of the floats and sound the alarm.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side view in elevation of my improved apparatus in its normal position-that is, with a suitable stage of water in the boiler. Fig. 2 is a side elevation showing the position of parts with high water. Fig. 3 shows the position of parts with low water.

A represents a hollow plug that is threaded at a. This plug screws into the boiler-sheet on top of the boiler. To the upper end of the plug is attached the whistle B, that is of the ordinary construction. To the lower end of the plug and inside of the boiler is attached a cross-piece, G. The cross-piece embraces the end of the plug, andis secured by a set-screw, c. To the cross-piece G are attached the depending arms I), E, F, and G. The arms F and G are slotted.

H and I are levers that pass through the slots in the arm G, and are pivoted, respectively, at g and 2', as shown. The prongs of the arm F embrace loosely the levers G and I, and serve as lateral guides to these levers,,and the lever G is pivoted at b to the valve-stem b. This valve is simply a rod with a conical upper end that fits a suitable seat, b under the whistle, so that when the valve-stem is elevated the valve is closed and is opened by depressing the valve-stem.

To the lever I is pivoted the rod 1, that passes loosely through a hole in the toe d of the arm D, the latter serving as a guide for the rod 1. To the lower end of this rod is attached the float 1 To the lever H is pivoted the rod G, that passes through the toe e of the arm E, and to the lower end of the rod G is attached the float G The lever I, at the extreme of the short armof the lever, curves upward at i, as shown. It will be observed that the float I is located some distance below the float G".

The arrangement of parts is such that when the water rises in the boiler to the ordinary stage suitable for carrying in the boiler the float I is elevated until the upper end of the rod 1 strikes the cross'piece C, after which it can rise no farther with the water, and this elevated position of the float 1 is its normal position. N ow, if the water continues to rise until it reaches the float G",it will have reached the upper limit that is desirable for it to rise in the boiler, and if it rises still higher it will elevate the float G and raise the connected end of the lever G and depress the short arm of the lever G, which would of course draw the valve downward and open it and sound the alarm-whistle. As the water recedes, the gravity of this float would close the valve. If, now, the water should fall so lowas not to support the float 1",the gravity of this float would pull down the connected end of the lever Land the point i would strike the lever G and elevate it and sound the whistle. The lengths of the rods 1 and G are arranged to locate these floats, so that the medium stage of water will be about midway between the floats when the float I is raised and the float G is depressed. It will be seen then that if the water rises or falls to any considerable extent, it will sound the whistle by means of one or the other of the floats.

The device is quite inexpensive, simple, and durable.

The whistle B may be quite small, so that its cost is but trifling, for the engineer is always supposed to be in the immediate vicinity and would hear the alarm if the whistle were reduced to the size of a mere toy-whistle.

The rods G and I are secured to the respective floats by set-screws,as shown. These rods, when shipped, are of considerable length, and when the apparatus is attached to aboiler these rods are cut to suitable lengths according to the size of the boiler. Also it will be observed that the toes or guides d and e are elevated, so that they are always in the steam-space, and are not therefore affected by scales that are deposited from the water. The same may be said of all of the joints of the apparatus, and, as there is no stuffing-box for the valve-stem, there is nothing to hinder the apparatus from working freely at all times.

What I claim is- 1. In a high and low water alarm, the combination,with an alarm-whistle having a valvestem extending inwardly into the boiler, of a lever pivotally connected to said stem, a float suspended from the outer end of said lever, a second lever adapted to bear against the firstmentioned lever, and a float suspended from the second lever, all of the above parts being combined substantially as set forth.

2. In a high and low water alarm, the combination, with a hollow plug secured to and extending through the walls of a steam-boiler,

a whistle attached to the outer end of said plug, the stem of the whistle-valve locatedinside the plug and extending into the boiler, a cross-bar and arms attached to the inner end of the plug for supporting the mechanism inside of the boiler, floats connected with levers that directly or indirectly operate the valve-stem, with the arrangement of levers such that the whistle-valve is opened by the elevation of one float or by the depression of the other float, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I sign this specification, in the presence of two witnesses, this 31st day of August, 1885.

' FRANK J. BORT.

Witnesses:

CHAS. H. DORER, ALBERT E. LYNCH. 

